


Ours is the vengeance

by ProdigySorcerer



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-16
Updated: 2015-09-09
Packaged: 2018-04-09 16:31:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4356311
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ProdigySorcerer/pseuds/ProdigySorcerer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A place to store my Orys/Argella and Argella/Orys drabbles and stories</p><p>Latest chapter: Loyalty of the hounds II</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Loyalty of the hounds I

**Author's Note:**

> In this series of drables (Loyalty of the hounds) due to inspiration from a RL friend which reminds me of Argella I've decided to make Argella a dog lover/person in this fic.

She was with her dogs in the courtyard when Orys saw her that mourning, he had practically sneaked up on her careful as to not betray his presence, a silly thing to do and childish he was commander of the force occupying Storm's End and not some roguish youth who wanted to catch a glimpse of the king's daughter.

And yet that was exactly what he had done, he dared not disturb her as he needed to study the last Storm Queen more, the mystery with Argella Durandon, today's mystery at least Orys noted that she found a way to vex him daily, was how exactly could she have become more beautiful just overnight?

The temptation was strong within him to simply utter the words, get it over with look like either a fool or a lick spittle but get one damn answer out of her with that beautiful voice, that's all that he would need and he'd work out the rest from there on.

"Lord Orys, is there something you have need of me for or why are you standing there ?" she called out, Orys's mind could only scatter and go in every direction of the map.

Had she seen him from the start or only now?

Had he be allowed to linger such that she could brace herself for the conversation or was this all the time she could suffer his presence and she wanted to end it now.

"No, I have no need of your presence my lady " what an utter lie he had spoken but he had to power on through ", I was just admiring your dogs, such noble and handsome beasts." as befitting their mistress he so wanted to add but refrained once again.

"Thank you Lord Orys, did you not have dogs on Dragonstone ?"

"Nobles everywhere keep dogs for their companionship and their hunting prowess ..." he decided to answer academically.

"Dogs are noble enough that they offer companionship and love to the smallfolk as well." Argella replied her eyes mocking him as if the answer contained some wisdom he needed to glean or he would surely go insane.

"But not to bastards ... " he couldn't keep himself from commenting, truly if he would ever found his own house it's words would be "We pick at scabs" whether they be of the physical variety or of the soul.

"Ha ha ..." she laughed cruelly " do you think dogs can sense whether you were born on the wrong side of the bed or be so cruel as to deny you ?" 

"Dogs always carry out their master's will so it's the master or the mistress you have to be wary about."

Argella gave him a look that chilled him down to his soul and replied her voice barely over a whisper:

"If only our dogs could wield spears and swords" she sighed softly " their loyalty wouldn't have vanished under the shadows of a dragon ... " she didn't need to finish the sentence Orrys knew what she intended to go, with loyal troops she would have never been served to him in chains.

Her eyes continue to bore into him defiantly urging thoughts better left unspoken to the surface, about how it was her father's pride and fury which had started this whole storm which was engulfing Westeros Orrys guarded his tongue or Argella's patience finally snapped.

"Are you going to take them too ? Are my boys ... " Orrys couldn't help but notice how she humanized the beasts, it was true he had never desired to raise hounds for his own and his closest friend had a dragon and not a dog so he was really out of his depth right now "too much of a danger to your lord Aegon ?"

"What ? No,no ... " he wanted to demand what sort of villains did she thought them to be, but then he remembered what they were doing to her homeland what he personally did to her father "a dragon cares not for wolves so why should we at the more tame hounds?"

"Hounds are perhaps more dangerous, if only because we forget they were once wolves and if we forget our duties to them we still have to sleep under their guard." the warning was as clear as it could be to the warrior's ears "do not press your courtship, I may not be a warrior but I am lethal none the less".


	2. Nothing ever changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Argella thought she had escaped the fate of every Stormlands wife.

Argella had spent her childhood at her mother's side, her father was always away either to lead a battle or sign a treaty or on other kingly business for she grew up when there were seven kings in Westeross and that meant kingly business was always in the works.

As she grew and approached womanhood her mother started easing her in to what her life as a queen would entail, she described all the magic and emotion of courtship and love, the acceptance and strength she could gain from a good marriage but also the many cold nights she would have to endure as her future husband would campaign far from home, as the Stormlands had their fair share of enemies the Reach was ever proud of their knights and eager to field them, the Dornishmen were their traditional enemies and their enemies in the Riverlands had merely been replaced by the savage Ironborn.

When Argella had next met her father she couldn't help but ask what lord or prince or king would be her betrothed so she could start preparing for their life together, Argillac completely caught by surprise and flabbergasted could merely get in the words "alliances","kings" and "too soon" before excusing himself and bravely running away.

Sometime later during a warm summer night her mother tried to explain, that her husband would have to be a brave warrior and general because battle (and fury) was the Durrandon way just like being cunning was the Lannister way and being grim was the Stark way but beyond that he would also be smart and wilful because her daughter was smart and wilful and like drew like. 

Years later It came as a afterthought, she was married but in this brave new world her husband would never be away on campaigns as there was one King now and no more wars were needed, had they ever been truly needed she wondered, Argella didn't know how to feel that her mother was wrong and she had escaped the fate of all stormlander women before her, truthfully she didn't know how feel about a lot of things these days.

And then the war came, it was against Dorne and it demanded her husband and with time despite her protestations Argella found herself in her mother's place gazing towards the Boneway hoping to see a sign of her husband's safe arrival.


	3. Loyalty of the hounds II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again continuing with my head canon of Argella being a dog lover and adding a different head canon of Argella being short/petite, in my head I see Orys as huge like his descendants and I wanted to contrast him with Argella at least in one way on a physical level.

She had returned to her quarters from that embarrassing incident in the courtyard, she damned that Baratheon usurper he already had her castle Argella had already been reduced to a prisoner did she need to be stalked as well everywhere she went as well ?

Her room was her last true sanctuary for some strange reason he had not intruded on her in this place, might he have a sliver of chivalric decency, but alas the silence of it was starting to claw at her mind, once she had scores of ladies in wedding with which she would spend her days but now she was truly alone.

Maybe a harsher blow than the "departure" of her ladies was the lack of skilled servants in the castle, that was the reason she ventured outside to begin with peaseants had been brought from the fields to take up the upkeep of the castle and she feared for her boys treatment at the hands of these new arrivals.

Her boys were two ,still rather young, Westerland short haired pointers, excellent hunting dogs Loren Lannister had proclaimed their breed when he presented the pups to her father during a series of diplomatic talks, her Father, 7 Gods keep him well had no time for hunting, for battle was what he craved so he had given the dogs unto her care.

This was a couple years before Aegon's shameless warlust was unleashed on her homeland, her boys were still growing and they need a good diet that's why she had gone out she was afraid the peasants which were drafted to serve the castle would not follow the detailed instructions she left them.

If Argella was happy for one thing it was that she managed to see to it that the servants did their job well before that warlord leaped upon her as if he was a normall suitor and not a brute who was occupying her castle.

The Baratheon had even gone so far as to deny her her House words, as they it echoed through the ages fury had always been the Durrandon's to call upon yet when she wanted to fill it the pure unadulterated furry, wrath, hatred Argella found that she couldn't.

Oh yes there was fury, there was anger and hatred but it was tinged, by memories of his acts of kindness when she was in chains, betrayed by her own garrison, her own ladies in waiting, her own people even as they expected for her to be used like a piece of meat.

Did one good act was out the bad ?

More importantly what was the tally up until now ? Her father, her castle, her House, how can you take those and weigh them on a scale ?

And she couldn't help but think, was clothing her keeping her alive and unmolested truly a selfless act or did he have an agenda ?

Argella was no fool, she wasn't some blushing maiden enamoured of songs, she knew she would have to marry in order to ensure her familly line would continue to lead the Kingdom of the Stormlands.

Yet even when she was a Queen to be, her suitors weren't as much of a burden as the Baratheon, they came and they went from Storm's End it was often enough that she'd heard rumours that she was too wilfull and other ladies were a better catch even if they could not offer a kingdom.

One thing stung her though, bypassing the armour of her pride, that some of her scorned suitors would complain of her height implying that they desired taller maidens, as if longer legs could equal a kingdom, a impenetrable castle and mingling their blood with that of the sea and storm gods.

She began to laugh out loud thinking of the Storm Lords who used to vie for her hand now if she did marry her husband would still merely be a lord albeit a Lord Paramount or whatever stupid title Aegon would invent next, that was the advantage to not having laides in waiting or companions no one could hear and wisper and call her mad or broken.

"Mad ,Mad, Mad" the word echoed in her mind "Mad ,Angry ,I'm mad at you , Mad" it shifted finally settling into "Mad, Furious, Mad, Fury, Fury" the image of Orys popped into her mind again, dirty and unshaven, fresh from battle and marching heaving for breath and barely standing in his armour.

He was looking far from a conqueror and a king slayer when he released her from the chains, merely a man albeit one that was on the wining side, his ride with her, he'd insisted to dismount one of his cavalry as he said a lady should ride, had calmed him and steeled his nerves for his meeting with the Storm's End's garrison.

Though she did not knew from the start why he would need to calm himself, it was going to be a easy victory just receive the castle and the Storm Lands but as she observed him she started to understand Aegon's policy was that those that bent the knee would be maintained in power.

Yet Orys did not see it that way, for some reason Argella still did not understand he felt her plight her furry with the traitours, the false friends who were looking at her with surprise from storm End's battlements.

Mayhaps they had thought she would have been executed on the spot as to crush House Durrandon forever or kept in a tent only to fuffils the bastard's carnal desires, surely they did not expect her to ride in at his side, surely they didn't expect her to whisper in his ear to use his fury his indignation as the blade of her revenge.

By the time they were being dragged before the chopping blocked they'd realised, to this day Argella did not understand why he desired to swing the blade himself, maybe that had been his duty on Dragonstone as well, nor did she understand how he'd managed to explain himself to Aegon that he'd executed dozens of nobles which were content to accept Targaryen rule.

But Orys had been allowed to remain in command of the forces occupying the Storm Lands and that's how he continued to pester her, yet now after her fury after the courtyard incident had died down she discovered a strange new feeling in her chest, the child of love and hate, fury and calm, temptation and apprehension.

It was the same feeling she had they'd meted out justice to her betrayers that day, and 7 Gods help her Argella thought she must have gone mad because she wanted to have that feeling back of them acting in unison.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This scene of Argella convincing Orys to execute those that betrayed her is a deviation from me, I think in canon the betrayers were banished but I wanted to add something to the story to make it darker and have Argella score a win, again making a contrast between her more subtle power vs Orys's martial one and showing what they could do together if they joined forces.

**Author's Note:**

> To be continued


End file.
